Many manufacturers now use computer-operated saws, lathes, milling machines, welding machines, and the like, to produce their products. These automated machines can provide significant cost savings when compared to manual methods. One problem with these systems, however, has been a lack of an efficient, reliable system for feeding various sizes of stock. In particular, there has been a problem feeding lumber of various lengths, widths, and heights to automatic saws. This problem has prevented manufacturers from fully utilizing the power of their automated saws.
FIGS. 1-2 (prior art) show one partial solution to this problem. The operator of this apparatus laid lumber boards 100 edge to edge on angled arms 110 (approximately 30° from horizontal). A release arm 120, held in a “closed” position by a pneumatic actuator 130, locked the boards 100 in the apparatus. Upon command, the pneumatic actuator 130 opened to release the bottom board and to almost simultaneously cause the “heel” 140 of the release arm to grip the next board. This allowed one board to drop onto the conveyor 150. The release arm was held in this open position for a short time to allow the released board to get clear and then was reset to the closed position. The stack of boards then slid downward against the release arm.
One problem with this apparatus, however, is that it required several angled support arms to support the lumber, particularly longer boards. Each of these angled arms had its own release arm/actuator that needed to open and close in unison with others supporting that board. This coordination problem often caused jamming, particularly with twisted or warped lumber. Another problem is that the machine only offered limited capacity for wide boards, such as 2″×10″ and 2″×12″ boards. Still another problem was that it was difficult to load longer lumber into this apparatus.
Accordingly, there is a need for an efficient, reliable magazine lumber feeder that can supply large numbers of boards of all sizes.